Follow TV Tropes

Following

Context YMMV / ShadowOfTheColossus

Go To

1It's very tempting to say everything, but...
2
3Beware unmarked spoilers.
4
5[[foldercontrol]]
6
7[[folder:Wander and his motives]]
8* {{Adorkable}}: There are various signs that he's really out of his range of experience during his quest, top among them being that he's incredibly clumsy when running, climbing, swinging his sword, and so on.
9* AlternativeCharacterInterpretation: Is he TheHero, the VillainProtagonist, or something in between? The ambiguity of the story means he can be any of these things.
10* JerkassWoobie: Wander is killing dozens of sentient creatures and [[AmbiguousSituation possibly]] endangering the world, but with the amount of things the guy goes through for love [[AmbiguousSituation (whether it be romantic or platonic)]], a few players just wanted to give him a hug.
11[[/folder]]
12
13[[folder:The Colossi]]
14* AlternativeCharacterInterpretation: Are they all just mindless beasts? Or are they aware of Wander's motives and actively attempting to stop him from releasing Dormin? Or are they, perhaps, attacking out of fear? (Celosia's behavior suggests that the Colossi are capable of feeling fear, as he backs away from a lit torch and may even sound a bit like he's whimpering.)
15* AnticlimaxBoss: Malus can feel like this to some players expecting a more action-oriented finale. While the stormy atmosphere and the intense run-up are exciting, Malus cannot harm you once you've passed the DeathCourse, almost qualifying as a ZeroEffortBoss at this stage were it not for the fact that he can shake you off like any other colossus can. Even if he succeeds in doing so, the fall is unlikely to kill you, so the battle becomes a matter of diligently repeating the steps as necessary until you succeed and make it to the head, which needs to be stabbed quite a lot despite the lack of any danger. Between Malus’s impotence to stop you, the tedious nature of the climb and kill, and the melancholy music, one wonders if the anticlimactic elements might have been intentional, to emphasize the pitiful aspects of the colossi and characterize the act of killing them as unrewarding. In particular, at one point near the end of the climb you ''must'' climb onto Malus hand, where he pulls you in to examine you... but instead of trying to harm you, he merely examines you curiously.
16* BreatherBoss:
17** Compared to Dirge and Celosia, Pelagia is much slower and fairly straight forward for how you're supposed to defeat it. Its main attack can even simply be dodged by dropping underwater.
18** From a gameplay standpoint, Phalanx is far easier than the three bosses that came before it. It can only deal damage indirectly, and the fight is pretty fun to boot. From an emotional standpoint, though, it's likely to be the first boss that'll make you reconsider Wander's actions, thanks to its extremely clear NonMaliciousMonster nature and its rather majestic death animation.
19** Argus, the 15th Colossus, is quite a bit simpler and less tense a fight compared to Cenobia, the Colossus that came before it. That said, figuring out how to get up on it can be a bit of a GuideDangit moment, but it's still a step down in difficulty when compared to Cenobia.
20** Kuromori can be this when you realize that the higher up it is when it falls, the longer it stays down. Lure it up to the highest level of the arena, shoot it down, then immediately jump after it and there's a good chance you'll be able to kill it without it managing to get up again (at the expense of a little health lost in your own fall).
21* CatharsisFactor: From a game play perspective, the game's hardest challenge is completing all of the Time Trials on both Normal and Hard. Not only does that feel like a major accomplishment, but using Flash Arrows to blow up those slippery silver-tailed lizards and delivering a OneHitKO to any Colossus with a single sigil with the Queen's Sword just feels so ''good'' after all the pain experienced to get them.
22* CommonKnowledge: The names that the Colossi are most commonly referred to by (e.g. Valus and Phaedra), including on this page, are actually {{Fan Nickname}}s and not official. The closest thing to official names are the ones they had during development; Fumito Ueda discussed them in an interview with Famitsu, so they're publicly known and are the ones listed first on the character page... but most fans don't use those names because they're not as cool. For example, the development name for "Valus" was "Minotaur", and "Barba" was "Minotaur B."
23* DracoInLeatherPants: Granted, while the game [[YouBastard does try to make you feel horrible for killing them]], fans like to portray the Colossi as purely innocent creatures who are slain by the [[RonTheDeathEater evil Wander]] for a selfish reason... Including the ones that attack him on sight with no provocation. In their credit, though, Wander ''did'' intrude into their territory wielding the only weapon able to kill the Colossi, so they're somewhat justifiably hostile.
24* EnsembleDarkhorse: Gaius. He's the third Colossus faced, yet fans tend to think of him as the unofficial mascot for the game. Compared to the other Colossi, Gaius tends to have more fan art of him than the other Colossi, and tends to get focused on more than the others by the fans. Even Valus, the first Colossus and the one on the boxart, doesn't get as much attention. A close second would be Phalanx, thanks to having a [[BestBossEver very memorable battle]].
25* EpilepticTrees: Malus' face is potentially a DoubleMeaning - their carved stone grimace can be interpreted as fury towards your actions, or horror towards them.
26* FanPreferredCutContent: Speculation over WhatCouldHaveBeen regarding the beta Colossi is a popular pastime within the fandom. Of the beta Colossi, [[https://teamico.fandom.com/wiki/Spider the spider]], [[https://teamico.fandom.com/wiki/Devil devil]], [[https://teamico.fandom.com/wiki/Worm worm]], and [[https://teamico.fandom.com/wiki/Phoenix Phoenix]] are among the most popular, due to looking the most unique of the cut Colossi.
27* GoddamnedBoss: Considering that there are sixteen wildly variable boss battles to choose from, it's inevitable that some of them will end up as this. Occasionally, a Colossus is not tricky to defeat, but instead is a MarathonBoss, and takes a long time to complete the strategy (Cenobia is a big offender here). The most notable ones, though, are:
28** Pelagia. One of the trickier PuzzleBoss battles, since getting it to expose its weak point requires a complicated bit of planning and experimentation. This is also while said boss is shooting balls of lightning at you every now and then, and you're swimming awkwardly through the water with it. Doesn't really help that it looks rather creepy.
29** Dirge. Even if you realize quickly that you can shoot it [[spoiler: in the eyes]], doing it ''while sitting backward, galloping on horseback'' is tricky, [[SomeDexterityRequired not helped by the layout of the Playstation controllers]]. The target also might not appear before Dirge makes an aggressive dive, or Agro might have to make a turn and throw your aim off. Even worse if you're still struggling with Agro's controls by this stage.
30** Basaran, (though see ThatOneBoss if you found it really hard). Unlike most other Colossi, the ColossusClimb is the easy bit. The really annoying bit is getting it to [[spoiler: stand above a geyser in time to get thrown over. Even if you get it in the right position, the geyser may stop just before you have time to shoot its ankles, and by the time the geyser fires again, Basaran has usually moved on. It doesn't help that Basaran would rather shoot you than move closer. Oh, and the geyser has to be in just the right place or it won't work, even when logically it should have an effect.]]
31* ItsEasySoItSucks: "Sucks" is a strong word, but for some players who have a large focus on boss fights vs story/setting, they will complain that after you figure out how to climb every Colossi, actually killing them takes little effort as all you've left to do is just stab it till it's dead, and that once you've beaten the game once, there is no challenge to a replay. Rather astonishingly, one skilled player uploaded a video of him defeating all 16 Colossi in Hard time mode in ''less than an hour.''
32%%* ParanoiaFuel
33* ThatOneBoss:
34** Kuromori fires trios of energy blasts when provoked. The kicker is that [[DeadlyGas the gas that remains actually hurts you]]. And beating it is no walk in the park, either; you have to [[spoiler:lure him up a wall, go to one of the few openings, ''very'' quickly shoot two legs, then jump from what is usually a high height to reach the bottom to attack him. It sounds challenging, but it's even harder to execute.]]
35** Basaran is this or a GoddamnedBoss (see above) because flipping him over to climb onto him is trickier than it sounds. Being one of the slower colossi, luring him into position takes a while, and the geysers won't affect him unless he's standing directly over one. This is normally tedious but doable; [[LuckBasedMission in Time Trials, however...]]
36** Dirge can be this for rookie players. He is [[LightningBruiser fast, hard-hitting,]] ''[[AxCrazy extremely]]'' [[AxCrazy aggressive,]] [[spoiler:and doesn't open his eyes until he's ''right up on your ass'', giving you only seconds to aim and shoot before he performs his lunging attack]]. Unless you've mastered horseback gameplay beforehand, you'll see [[NightmareFuel his Game Over screen]] ''way'' more often than you'd like.
37** Celosia. If you're really unlucky, the thing can back you in a corner and never let you get up properly, causing a game over and making you try again. Even if that doesn't happen, though, [[spoiler:the stick that you need to pick up to scare Celosia away sometimes doesn't want to let you pick it up, leaving you swinging your sword like a fool and a wide open target for the boss to charge at you.]] And that's not even taking into account how hard it is to dodge.
38** Cenobia is just as small and fast as Celosia. A greater part of its battle is leaping from rooftop to pillar to rooftop as the thing stalks you from below, and if you miss one of the pillars or rooftops, you're screwed since Cenobia shares Celosia's CycleOfHurting attack. On top of that, there's a part of the battle where you ''have'' to make a mad dash on the ground to the next safe area, and you only have just enough time to make it to safety lest Cenobia start batting you around like a ball.
39** Argus is considered the hardest out of all the colossi due to his aggressive attacks, [[MarathonBoss the amount of time it takes]] ''[[MarathonBoss just to get onto him]]'', and how his almost-constant thrashing makes his sigils hard to stab. All that combined with [[AnnoyingVideoGameHelper Dormin's useless advice]] makes this battle a teeth-grinding [[TrialAndErrorGameplay exercise in trial and error]]. [[JustifiedTrope Granted, Argus]] ''[[JustifiedTrope is]]'' [[JustifiedTrope the game's penultimate boss]], but even FinalBoss Malus is much easier by comparison.
40* TheScrappy: Over time, fans have started to feel this way towards the Minotaur trio. (Valus, Barba, and Argus) The main reason being due to them largely using the same animations and basic model set, feeling like they [[ReplacementScrappy replaced some of the far more interesting beta Colossi]] for what basically amounts to being a rehash of the same Colossus three times.[[note]]Though it should be noted that, despite sharing the same basic model and animations, their actual ''battles'' are notably different in how you have to figure out how to get on them.[[/note]]
41* SelfImposedChallenge: [[NintendoHard Reaching Malus (Colossus 16)'s feet without using the cover provided.]] For the record, ''it's been done,'' and is in fact a favored tactic of [[SpeedRun speedrunners]]. It first involves running in ''[[ViolationOfCommonSense a straight line towards him]]'' by following an ''extremely specific'' course and accompanying set of instructions. ''Every single move'' you make has to be nearly frame-perfect or else you'll get blown away by Malus' lethally-accurate bolts.
42* UnintentionalUncannyValley: All of the Colossi might be imposing, but their movements manage to look at least somewhat anatomically correct (Or as anatomically correct as an enormous rock-monster can be), but with Pelagia, it has somewhat bobbing, unnatural movements, which doesn't really take away from its [[NightmareFuel somewhat creepy]] nature.
43* TheWoobie: A lot of players feel bad about having to kill these guys. A few of the bigger recipients of this are:
44** Phaedra, for the scream it emits upon being stabbed.
45** Phalanx, for being the only colossus that will never actively attack you.
46** Celosia to some, given its pitiful cowering when faced with a torch.
47[[/folder]]
48
49[[folder:Everything else]]
50* AlternativeCharacterInterpretation:
51** The game gives you only the barest hints of story and leaves the vast majority up to the player.
52** [[spoiler:Did Agro survive the fall, or was it Dormin who resurrected her along with Mono?]]
53** Dormin. ''Anything'' to do with Dormin. Are they evil? A NobleDemon? A benevolent god that was mistaken as evil [[spoiler: because of their shadowy and dark appearance and power to control life and death?]] There's a ''lot'' of evidence to point towards any of these interpretations thanks to their actions throughout the game.
54* AnnoyingVideoGameHelper: Dormin is somewhat infamous for the massively unhelpful "hints" They will chime in with if it takes you too long to kill a Colossus.
55* AwesomenessWithdrawal: A major reason for the "17th Colossus" "rumors" that still persist to this day. With a game of epic bosses the size of mountains, it's only natural that, once the final one is slain, people would want more. While no true 17th Colossus actually exists, groups of dedicated data-miners and researchers on the game's development history ''have'' dug up a lot about [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5Do_0aWpYeo Colossi that never made it into the game]].
56* BrokenBase:
57** A minor one over the [=PS3=] rerelease, between those who think it's the best and most complete version of the game, and those who think it's a PortingDisaster. Pros include items from the PAL version, better framerate, and minor updates to the graphics. Cons include increased load times, the removal of a few items exclusive to the North American release, and the removal of a few GoodBadBugs such as the ability to move during certain cut scenes (which made {{Speed Run}}ning certain Colossi harder to pull off). Some people are also bugged by the fact that there is no PC version, if only for the chance of there being [[GameMod mods]] to add more Colossi to the game.
58** Then there's the Platform/PS4 remake of the game. While some do like the absolutely [[SugarWiki/VisualEffectsOfAwesome gorgerous]] graphical upgrades, others are feeling Sony is to trying and wring out every last dollar sign they can out of Shadow of the Colossus' popularity; especially with the announcement that the only thing being changed in the remake was the visual upgrades. This gave players the impression there was no new content being added, which after it released was quickly proven false, with ''79'' collectibles to further reward exploration and [[spoiler:A new area and weapon you gained access to for finding them all]].
59** On one hand, there are fans who like the game for the vague, open-to-interpretation plot, the wide-open scenery, and how the game makes you feel bad for the Colossi. On the other, there are fans who are into the game just for fighting the Colossi. The former usually treat the latter as small-minded idiots for not caring about the Colossi or feeling bad for what's going on, while the latter treat the former as a bunch of overly sensitive people who are overthinking things, and point out that if the developers really were going for that, they wouldn't have added frivolous things like the time attack mode.
60** The base is also split along how to interpret the story. The two major camps are those who see the game as a tragedy where you're playing as a VillainProtagonist and those who see the game as a tragedy where the bad guy wins and the hero's efforts were all for nothing in the end. A large chunk of the fanbase that overlaps both camps feels that the game's story is grounded in GrayAndGrayMorality and too ambiguous to really say.
61* CultClassic: The ''VideoGame/TeamICOSeries'' games as a whole are this, but even in regards to ''VideoGame/{{ICO}}'' and ''VideoGame/TheLastGuardian'', Shadow of the Colossus ''still'' regarded as the best game in the series and has a massive surprisingly active fanbase to this day, alongside a series of dedicated hackers trying to find "the last big thing" hidden in the game's code.
62* DifficultySpike: Most players agree that this happens somewhere around Colossi 3–5, which require strategies more complex than "climb up and stab repeatedly" to win the battle. The 10th Colossus, Dirge, is considered the starting point of another spike thanks to the battles becoming faster paced and far more tense (sans a few {{Breather Boss}}ess).
63* DracoInLeatherPants: The ambiguous nature of the story means that it's not entirely clear which characters are the villains, but fans tend to coalesce around one of two major interpretations, hinging on whether Wander is a VillainProtagonist or not. Seeing comments from fans who subscribe to the other interpretation can feel like seeing villains in leather pants or (anti-) heroes as Death Eaters; see also RonTheDeathEater.
64** Wander's defenders generally see him as a AntiHero at worst, playing up his bravery, determination, and noble goal of bringing someone who was apparently ritually murdered back to life while downplaying how tragic the deaths of the Colossi are, Dormin's dubious nature, or both.
65** Those who side with Lord Emon tend to see him as a HeroAntagonist coming to clean up Wander's mess. His nature as some kind of holy knight is emphasized, while his implied involvement in HumanSacrifice in the backstory is swept under the rug or excused as keeping something even worse from happening.
66** Dormin is ambiguous in general. Their fans tend to see them as [[BlueAndOrangeMorality an amoral force of nature]] at worst and the closest thing the game has to a BigGood at best, while downplaying or ignoring how much of the game frames them as a demonic being.
67* EnsembleDarkhorse: Agro, no pun intended. Almost everyone who played can agree [[spoiler: that the biggest PlayerPunch in the game is the DisneyDeath Agro receives right before facing the sixteenth Colossus.]] There's also the fact that, as a horse, Agro is the lone character who isn't subject to AlternativeCharacterInterpretation: she's just a loyal mare doing as her master directs her. Not to mention that her [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w09sKTkyAOk&list=RDtWxYnyT4sLA&index=3 theme music]] is [[SugarWiki/AwesomeMusic absolutely amazing.]]
68* EventObscuringCamera: Happens whenever a solid object, like the wall or a Colossus's thrashing limb, is behind Wander and will not let you see what is going on.
69* FandomRivalry:
70** With ''Franchise/TheLegendOfZelda'' in general, since it draws many elements from it, with a fair amount of people who think ''Shadow of the Colossus'' does them better than ''Zelda'' could even hope to do. Funnily enough, one can see ''Shadow Of The Colossus'' serving as a direct ''inspiration'' for several parts of the most recent Zelda game, ''Breath Of The Wild''; the part involving [[spoiler: the dragon Naydra and curing her corruption]] have a definite feel of the iconic Phalanx battle here, and the Colossi have something of a SpiritualSuccessor [[spoiler: in The Divine Beasts]]. Even the setting of ''Breath'' is desolate and quite spartan, not unlike ''Shadow's'' setting (though one could argue that the original ''Zelda'' game inspired this one, thus paying back the compliment). On the other hand, see FriendlyFandoms.
71** Related to it, there's also a rivalry between Agro fans and Epona fans. They basically compete for the title of "most iconic video game horse ever".
72* FriendlyFandoms: With ''Franchise/TheLegendOfZelda''. Fans who like both tend to be drawn to the similar fantasy settings and the way that Wander is a sort of MirrorCharacter to Link: both are courage-driven protagonists who, in their minds, are fighting to right a wrong. For some ''Zelda'' fans, ''Shadow of the Colossus'' is an interesting case study in a Link-like hero who is saying ScrewDestiny instead of living up to it. They do say a tragedy is what you get when the hero is in the wrong story. On the other hand, see FandomRivalry.
73* GoodBadBugs:
74** Jumping upwards diagonally costs almost no grip meter, allowing you to reach the secret garden much earlier than intended, although jumping up ''the whole temple'' that way is quite a physical challenge in its own right. This was fixed in the remake, to many fans' dismay.
75** Because of the physics engine of the game, in certain situations, it's possible to launch Wander up into the air ''way'' higher than he normally can jump, with [[FanNickname Agro launching]] being really useful for Time Attack trials.
76** Another quirk in the physics engine, if Wander hangs onto a Colossus in a certain spot, he'll be able to repeatedly stab them without being tossed around by the Colossi's shaking. Another really useful thing for Time Trials.
77* HardToAdaptWork: ''Shadow of the Colossus'' has been in talks for a film adaptation from as early as 2009, but has been stranded in DevelopmentHell with shifting writers and directors for over a decade. The most obvious appeal of ''Shadow of the Colossus'' for a movie adaptation is its highly cinematic battles against various colossal monsters amidst [[SceneryPorn beautiful landscapes]], but the obvious ''caveats'' are that the actual plot of the game is [[{{Minimalism}} supremely minimal]] and deliberately vague on details, with a thematic emphasis on the nature of [[ProtagonistCenteredMorality player-centric morality]] and the slow realization that [[YouBastard you, the player, are creating a tragedy by slaying the Colossi]], something that would be tricky to convert into a typical Hollywood film structure while remaining faithful to minimalist spirit of the game. A leaked draft of the screenplay (written by Justin Marks, whose sole prior film credit was ''Film/StreetFighterTheLegendOfChunLi'') attempted to rectify this by [[AdaptationExpansion giving much vaster attention on the backgrounds and motivations of its characters]] and [[CompressedAdaptation deemphasizing the Colossi battles]] (from sixteen to eight, and three of them are taken out in a single montage), but this was widely criticized as being an InNameOnly butchering of the game, setting up a bad precedent for the direction the movie could very well end up taking.
78* HypeBacklash: Both the story and gameplay have suffered from this overtime, but the gameplay especially has gotten more criticism from new players. A lot find the gameplay to be tedious and extremely clunky, being little more than a glorified boss rush with long moments where nothing happens.
79* ItsTheSameNowItSucks: Probably the biggest complaint about the Platform/PS4 version is, besides the graphical upgrades, basically ''nothing'' was changed. While the Platform/PS3 version at least came with ''VideoGame/{{ICO}}'' which in turn also included the [[RegionalBonus then PAL exclusive]] items in it, there's nothing to really bring people who owned the Platform/PS2 or [=PS3=] versions back for another round. It didn't help that, before the [=PS4=] remake was even announced, the devs implied that the next time they remade the game, they would likely be making a few changes, either. However, soon after the release, it was discovered [[spoiler: there's 79 hidden coins known as "Enlightenments" hidden around the world, and finding all 79 unlocks a nifty new sword in a hidden area underneath the Shrine of Worship.]] So it's possible that Sony and [=BluePoint=] were using [[ExactWords Exact Words]] when they said weren't changing anything besides the graphics, instead ''adding'' content.
80* JustHereForGodzilla: The moral ambiguity of the plot fascinates some, but others just play the game to battle the Colossi.
81* MagnificentBastard: Dormin is a dark entity trapped in the Forbidden Lands. Meeting [[PlayerCharacter Wander]] and learning of his desires to revive [[LostLenore Mono]], Dormin tells Wander they can revive her if Wander slays the sixteen Colossi keeping them imprisoned, but also [[NobleDemon warns]] Wander that he would suffer a heavy price. Released from their prison and confronted by Lord Emon, Dormin possesses Wander's body and uses him in their attempt to kill Emon and his men. When Emon survives and leaves the Forbidden Lands, Dormin reveals to have survived and fuse themselves with Wander becoming a [[HornedHumanoid horned infant]] and revive Mono as [[IGaveMyWord promised]].
82* MemeticMutation:
83** Most of the colossus battle, particularly Gaius the third Colossus, are widely used as an object labeling memes.
84** The colossi are sometimes viewed as a MemeticLoser due to them basically dying to an ant.
85** "The Opened Way" has memetically been associated with facing insurmountable obstacles or giant foes, or fighting giant monsters in general, such as in Creator/CarbotAnimations' ''VideoGame/EldenRing'' parody.
86** Wander's motivation to revive Mono has had some players jokingly brand him as a "simp". Some have humorously suggested that he should have just saved himself all the trouble and just got a new girlfriend.
87** [[https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/578374769464967191/823315761930043402/unknown.png Cocaine Valus.]] [[labelnote:Explanation]]A place holder of Valus used for the beta-ending. Many have joked that Valus looks like he is made of cocaine.[[/labelnote]]
88** ''[[https://www.reddit.com/r/ShadowoftheColossus/comments/113wlfd/shadow_of_the_amogus/ Shadow of the]]'' ''[[VideoGame/AmongUs Amogus]]'', now available on the Pyasiation 22!
89** Malus's facepalm in his death animation has been also memed, often with captions like "Malus had never seen such bullshit before."
90* {{Narm}}: The ControllableHelplessness of the final section where Wander fights against falling into the supposedly inevitable can last pretty much as long as the player is stubborn. This quickly becomes hilarious as the music just keeps repeating and repeating while Wander strains, falls, and sometimes even stumbles end over end, but does not succumb.
91* PlayerPunch:
92** The death scene of each colossus is accompanied by the same melancholy tune, which more than once leaves players questioning whether all this killing is really worth it.
93** A more unexpected one comes near the end when [[spoiler:Agro ''falls into a ravine while throwing you to safety.'' Even though she survived, this isn't revealed until shortly before the credits roll.]]
94* RonTheDeathEater: Given the [[AmbiguousSituation ambiguity of the plot]], everyone but Agro, who mostly avoids it because, you know. She's a ''horse''. See also DracoInLeatherPants.
95** Despite his only known motives being trying to bring Mono back, many fans tend to paint Wander in a darker light. Common interpretations include being a StalkerWithACrush who Mono doesn't even know, an all around {{Jerkass}} to everyone but Agro, and anywhere and everywhere in between. While some say [[spoiler: him stealing the sword from Emon]] points to this, as said above, the situation is too ambiguous to really say.
96** On the other side of things, it's not totally clear what if anything Lord Emon had to do with sacrificing Mono. His most stringent detractors tend to portray him as a close-minded SinisterMinister who either killed her himself or ordered her killed, as well as him being at best misguided about Dormin's nature and at worst a zealot persecuting a rival religion's god.
97** Dormin themself has ambiguous morality, and their detractors tend to play up their demonic aspects while downplaying any signs of fair play with Wander or of simply having [[BlueAndOrangeMorality a different but not necessarily evil set of values from the mortal characters]].
98** Even ''Mono'' gets this from some quarters despite being dead most of the game, because of the theory that she eventually became the villain of ''VideoGame/{{ICO}}''. Knock on theories tend to at best portray her as the victim of some kind of corruption or curse post-game (or even pre-game if her "cursed fate" was to become the Queen of the Castle in the Mist), and at worst as having been an unpleasant person in the first place.
99* SacredCow: Due to the clearly artistic nature of the game. When the developers from [=BluePoint=] discussed the [=PS4=] remake, they made it clear they knew they wouldn't be able to please everyone.
100* ScrappyMechanic:
101** Agro has decent pathfinding AI that is absolutely vital for one battle and can be very helpful elsewhere, and she generally avoids danger by moving out of the way well ahead of time. The trade-off is that she does not always follow orders, will stop short if a player's chosen direction would result in a collision, and tends to go very slowly on narrow paths. Some players are okay with this and feel that the advantages outweigh the drawbacks, while others find this very difficult to get used to and wish she behaved more like a car or bike. [[ThatOneLevel Though pretty much everyone admits that it may be better to take a longer route than try to guide her through trees.]]
102** The way Colossi shake can make certain battles feel rather tedious. While it does make sense, the fact that Wander tends to slip and fall over every single small step the Colossi take can make attacking the weak points next to impossible. It's especially annoying when it happens just as Wander is about to stab, rendering the charge up for it pointless. Barba, in particular, is one of the worst offenders of this. Even worse, this ends up happening more frequently in the [=PS3=] remastered version thanks to the increased framerate, making certain time attack battles a LuckBasedMission in the process.
103* SignatureScene:
104** [[spoiler:Agro falling to her (presumed) death from the collapsing bridge on the way to Malus.]]
105** [[spoiler: Mono, Agro and the baby Wander in the secret garden encountering a deer before watching the hawk that would follow Wander around throughout the adventure fly away from the Forbidden Lands while the credits music plays.]] If not for Shadow of the Colossus, then for 'art' games as a whole, as it's regarded as ''the'' moment video games evolved from just being games to being an experience in their own right.
106* SpiritualAdaptation: Thematically the game feels very much like a video game version of ''Manga/{{Dororo}}''. [[WhatCouldHaveBeen There were even originally going to be 48 colossi]], just like the 48 demons in ''Dororo''.
107* ThatOneSidequest: Well, this is pretty much the ''only'' one, but still, reaching the secret garden will take you a long time. The climbing course isn't particularly difficult in itself, but you will have to make your grip gauge grow out of the screen if you don't want to fall to your death midway up. Be prepared to make two or three playthroughs and hunt down ''a lot'' of lizards for that.
108* TheyChangedItNowItSucks: While no one is going to deny that the ''Platform/PS4'' version [[SugarWiki/VisualEffectsOfAwesome looks absolutely stunning]], the switch to more realistic shaders, the toning down on the bloom and the extremely detailed grass added everywhere has caused the Forbidden Lands to lose a lot of its mystical, otherworldly abandoned wasteland wonderment the original version had. The updated character models are another point of contention; in an attempt to make the characters look more realistic, many complain that the new models just make the characters look like they haven't lost the baby fat in their faces yet, with Wander himself falling into the UnintentionalUncannyValley for many people. The [=PS4=] remake does come with a set of filters that allow the player to recreate the green foggy atmosphere of the original, at the very least.
109* ToughActToFollow: Shadow of the Colossus ended up being such a landmark title for gaming as a whole that its creator, Fumito Ueda, has struggled to have his other titles stand out next to it. Indeed; one of the biggest criticisms [[VideoGame/TheLastGuardian his next game would face]] would simply end up being that it wasn't a direct building upon of what he did with ''Shadow of the Colossus''.
110* ViewerGenderConfusion:
111** Many players assume Agro to be a stallion, due to a mistranslation in one of the tutorial messages wherein the horse is referred to with masculine pronouns ("Kick the side of the horse to make him run using X."). However, said pronouns do not appear in the original Japanese, and [[WordOfGod Fumito Ueda has confirmed]] that Agro is a mare.
112** Wander is sometimes mistaken for a woman, thanks to his delicate hair style, headband, and skirt-like outfit; as well as the manual for the European version of the game mistransliterating his name as "Wanda".
113[[/folder]]
114

Top